StrengthsFinder 2.0 Report · StrengthsFinder 2.0 Report © 2000, 2006-2008 Gallup, Inc. All rights...

StrengthsFinder 2.0 Report

© 2000, 2006-2008 Gallup, Inc. All rights reserved.

frank harvey

Your Top 5 Themes

LearnerAnalyticalFocusIndividualizationAchiever

What's in This Guide?

Section I: Awareness

A brief Shared Theme Description for each of your top five themes

Your Personalized Strengths Insights, which describe what makes you stand out fromothers with the same theme in their top five

Questions for you to answer to increase your awareness of your talentsSection II: Application

10 Ideas for Action for each of your top five themes

Questions for you to answer to help you apply your talentsSection III: Achievement

Examples of what each of your top five themes "sounds like" -- real quotes frompeople who also have the theme in their top five

Steps for you to take to help you leverage your talents for achievement

Strengths Insight and Action-Planning Guide

155230637 (frank harvey) © 2000, 2006-2008 Gallup, Inc. All rights reserved.

1

03/30/2010

Section I: Awareness

Learner

Shared Theme Description

People who are especially talented in the Learner theme have a great desire to learn and wantto continuously improve. In particular, the process of learning, rather than the outcome,excites them.

Your Personalized Strengths Insights

What makes you stand out?

By nature, you customarily figure out what makes each person special. You talk to, observe,or study individuals who produce nothing less than excellence to identify what inspires them.Unquestionably, you prefer to associate with those who share your passion for takingsomething good and making it better. Once you understand what drives a person, you canmotivate him or her to transform whatever was made better into something utterly superb. It’svery likely that you are a rational thinker. That is, you exhibit good judgment and exercisesound reasoning. These thought processes serve you well whenever you set out to acquiretrue knowledge and/or gain a skill. You school yourself by reading, investigating, examining,experiencing, or receiving instruction in a subject. Because of your strengths, you aremotivated to continually acquire knowledge and skills. Discovering new ways to use yourtalents energizes you. You are likely to escape from situations and avoid people who wantyou to keep doing what you already know how to do well. Maintaining an intellectual statusquo is unacceptable to you. Instinctively, you frequently work without much rest. Youtypically want to pinpoint useful and intriguing facts. You likely have a need to explain whyvarious events unfolded as they did. This information undoubtedly permits you to producemore and better results. Chances are good that you probably place your confidence inprofessionals, especially when you need instruction or realize you can benefit from theirexperiences. Asking specialists questions and respectfully paying attention to their responsesare just two ways you keep the peace. You are apt to count on these individuals to help youhandle sensitive problems, make appropriate choices, or design workable solutions thatpeople can accept.

Questions

1. As you read your personalized strengths insights, what words, phrases, or lines standout to you?

2. Out of all the talents in this insight, what would you like for others to see most inyou?



2

03/30/2010

Analytical


People who are especially talented in the Analytical theme search for reasons and causes.They have the ability to think about all the factors that might affect a situation.



Instinctively, you may be regarded by certain people as realistic or unsentimental. Perhapsthere are times when you want to do a better job of expressing your own feelings or allowingothers to voice some of theirs. When necessary, you might be the person who brings theconversation back to practical or factual matters. Chances are good that you may approachcertain win-lose situations in a practical and realistic manner. When you are intent on beingvictorious, perhaps you extinguish any sentimental feelings you might have toward yourrivals. Driven by your talents, you quiet outspoken people with your quick and cleverthinking. You rely on facts and reason to support your ideas. Many individuals choose tosubmit to whatever you tell them to do. Few dare to resist and ignore your orders. Frequentlyyour mental agility overpowers people who traditionally like to take charge. It’s very likelythat you usually have a blueprint — that is, a detailed outline — showing what you plan to doin the coming weeks, months, years, or decades. Each part of your design fits seamlessly withthe step preceding it and the one immediately following it. By nature, you occasionally adopta practical, factual, or unemotional position on certain issues. Maybe you refrain frombecoming sentimental about certain people and their problems.

Questions





3

03/30/2010

Focus


People who are especially talented in the Focus theme can take a direction, follow through,and make the corrections necessary to stay on track. They prioritize, then act.



By nature, you regularly document goals that can lead you to a future of your own choosing.You leave very little to chance when you outline your aims and push yourself to reach eachone. Driven by your talents, you typically document your goals and outline your action plan.By faithfully executing each step, you usually accomplish exactly what you intended. It’svery likely that you can mentally zero in on tasks for hours at a time when you have a goal toreach. When the assignment demands extra time, you would be wise to honor your body’snatural rhythms. In other words, if you are a “morning person,” work in the morning. Work inthe afternoon if that is when you hit your stride. Work in the evening if that is when you thinkbetter. Work around midnight after everyone has gone to bed if you are someone who usuallystays up very late. Instinctively, you are determined to be in charge of your own destiny. Thisis your life. You intend to be the ultimate decision maker regarding personal and professionalmatters. Chances are good that you devote your full attention to immediate tasks andchallenges. This explains why you give yourself plenty of time to comprehend what you readon the printed page or the computer screen. Diligence, persistence, and concentration arethree of your distinguishing traits.

Questions





4

03/30/2010

Individualization


People who are especially talented in the Individualization theme are intrigued with theunique qualities of each person. They have a gift for figuring out how people who aredifferent can work together productively.



Chances are good that you occasionally offer people useful suggestions about what needs tobe fixed, upgraded, renovated, or done better. It’s very likely that you bring people together.You form a bond with each individual as you begin to understand his or her circumstances.You naturally identify with someone’s situation. You have a gift for helping people discoverwhat they have in common. Often this frees them to communicate and cooperate.Instinctively, you might make certain types of difficult-to-understand ideas a little bit easierfor people to comprehend. Because of your strengths, you may recognize the unique talents ofpeople. Perhaps you demonstrate or explain ways they can cooperate with one another tomeet challenges, work on projects, or overcome difficulties. Driven by your talents, you maybe particularly prepared to assist adults — rather than youngsters — with their projects,problems, or needs. For that reason, you may appreciate people who enjoy coming to the aidof children.

Questions





5

03/30/2010

Achiever


People who are especially talented in the Achiever theme have a great deal of stamina andwork hard. They take great satisfaction from being busy and productive.



Driven by your talents, you normally devote your energies to pinpointing what makes peoplespecial and unique. This knowledge probably permits you to inspire many individuals to dotheir finest work. Because of your strengths, you normally strive to do things right. Takingshortcuts strikes you as unprincipled, thoughtless, and careless. You likely refuse to producesloppy work or engage in unethical practices. By nature, you habitually bring together allsorts of information so you can refer to it later. At the instant you collect a fact, example,story, or piece of data, typically you are eager to use it. You trust it is valuable. Yourfascination with knowledge has probably been part of you even before you formed the wordsto ask your first question. It’s very likely that you tend to be quite selective about thecompany you keep. You prefer to spend time with individuals who are trustworthy. Youconsciously avoid people whose words and deeds indicate they value honesty less than youdo. Chances are good that you are hardwired to work industriously. You willingly devotehours and energy to your job or studies. When you know your scores, ratings, rankings, orperformance might be compared to the results of others, you might redouble your efforts to bethe best.

Questions





6

03/30/2010

Questions

1. How does this information help you better understand your unique talents?2. How can you use this understanding to add value to your role?3. How can you apply this knowledge to add value to your team, workgroup,

department, or division?4. How will this understanding help you add value to your organization?5. What will you do differently tomorrow as a result of this report?



7

03/30/2010

Section II: Application

Learner

Ideas for Action:

Refine how you learn. For example, you might learn best by teaching; if so, seek outopportunities to present to others. You might learn best through quiet reflection; if so,find this quiet time.Develop ways to track the progress of your learning. If there are distinct levels or stagesof learning within a discipline or skill, take a moment to celebrate your progression fromone level to the next. If no such levels exist, create them for yourself (e.g., reading fivebooks on the subject or making three presentations on the subject).Be a catalyst for change. Others might be intimidated by new rules, new skills, or newcircumstances. Your willingness to soak up this newness can calm their fears and spurthem to action. Take this responsibility seriously.Seek roles that require some form of technical competence. You will enjoy the processof acquiring and maintaining this expertise.As far as possible, shift your career toward a field with constantly changing technologiesor regulations. You will be energized by the challenge of keeping up.Because you are not threatened by unfamiliar information, you might excel in aconsulting role (either internal or external) in which you are paid to go into newsituations and pick up new competencies or languages quickly.Research supports the link between learning and performance. When people have theopportunity to learn and grow, they are more productive and loyal. Look for ways tomeasure the degree to which you and others feel that your learning needs are being met,to create individualized learning milestones, and to reward achievements in learning.At work, take advantage of programs that subsidize your learning. Your organizationmay be willing to pay for part or all of your instructional coursework or forcertifications. Ask your manager for information about scholarships and othereducational opportunities.Honor your desire to learn. Take advantage of adult educational opportunities in yourcommunity. Discipline yourself to sign up for at least one new academic or adultlearning course each year.Time disappears and your attention intensifies when you are immersed in studying orlearning. Allow yourself to “follow the trail” by scheduling learning sessions duringperiods of time that will not be interrupted by pressing engagements.

Questions

1. Which of these action items speak to you? Highlight the actions that you are mostlikely to take.



8

03/30/2010

2. How will you commit to taking action? Write your own personalized action item thatyou will take in the next 30 days.



9

03/30/2010

Analytical

Ideas for Action:

Choose work in which you are paid to analyze data, find patterns, or organize ideas. Forexample, you might excel in marketing, financial, or medical research or in databasemanagement, editing, or risk management.Whatever your role, identify credible sources on which you can rely. You are at yourbest when you have well-researched sources of information and numbers to support yourlogic. For example, determine the most helpful books, websites, or publications that canserve as references.Your mind is constantly working and producing insightful analysis. Are others aware ofthat? Find the best way of expressing your thoughts: writing, one-on-one conversations,group discussions, perhaps lectures or presentations. Put value to your thoughts bycommunicating them.Make sure that your accumulation and analysis of information always leads to itsapplication and implementation. If you don’t do this naturally, find a partner who pushesyou from theory to practice, from thinking to doing. This person will help ensure thatyour analysis doesn’t turn into paralysis.Take an academic course that will expand your Analytical talents. Specifically, studypeople whose logic you admire.Volunteer your Analytical talents. You can be particularly helpful to those who arestruggling to organize large quantities of data or having a hard time bringing structure totheir ideas.Partner with someone with strong Activator talents. This person’s impatience will moveyou more quickly through the analytical phase into the action phase.You may remain skeptical until you see solid proof. Your skepticism ensures validity,but others may take it personally. Help others realize that your skepticism is primarilyabout data, not people.Look for patterns in data. See if you can discern a motif, precedent, or relationship inscores or numbers. By connecting the dots in the data and inferring a causal link, youmay be able to help others see these patterns.Help others understand that your analytical approach will often require data and otherinformation to logically back up new ideas that they might suggest.

Questions





10

03/30/2010

Focus

Ideas for Action:

When you set goals, discipline yourself to include timelines and measurements. Thesewill provide regular proof that you are indeed making progress.Seek roles in which you can function independently. With your dominant Focus talents,you will be able to stay on track with little supervision.Your greatest worth as a team member might be helping others set goals. At the end ofmeetings, take responsibility for summarizing what was decided, for defining whenthese decisions will be acted on, and for setting a date when the group will reconvene.Others will think, act, and talk less efficiently than you do. Pay attention. Sometimestheir “detours” will lead to discoveries and delights.Stretch your goal setting beyond work. If you find yourself becoming too focused onwork goals, set goals for your personal life. They will give weight to your personalpriorities and thereby help create balance in your life.Hours can disappear when you are intent on a task; you lose track of time. Make surethat all of your objectives are met and all of your priorities are followed by schedulingyour efforts and sticking to that schedule.You function best when you can concentrate on a few well-defined initiatives anddemands. Give yourself permission to reject projects or tasks that do not align with youroverall mission. This will help you concentrate your efforts on your most importantpriorities — and will help others appreciate your need for focus.Take the time to write down your aspirations, and refer to them often. You will feelmore in control of your life.At work, be sure to tell your manager your mid-term and short-term goals. This mightwell give your manager the confidence to give you the room you need.Make sure that the focus points you set for yourself take into consideration both quantityand quality. The integrity of your objectives will ensure that the application of yourFocus talents leads to solid and long-lasting success.

Questions





11

03/30/2010

Individualization

Ideas for Action:

Select a vocation in which your Individualization talents can be both used andappreciated, such as counseling, supervising, teaching, writing human interest articles,or selling. Your ability to see people as unique individuals is a special talent.Become an expert in describing your own strengths and style. For example, answerquestions such as: What is the best praise you ever received? How often do you like tocheck in with your manager? What is your best method for building relationships? Howdo you learn best? Then ask your colleagues and friends these same questions. Helpthem plan their future by starting with their strengths, then designing a future based onwhat they do best.Help others understand that true diversity can be found in the subtle differences betweeneach individual — regardless of race, sex, or nationality.Explain that it is appropriate, just, and effective to treat each person differently. Thosewithout strong Individualization talents might not see the differences among individualsand might insist that individualization is unequal and therefore unfair. You will need todescribe your perspective in detail to be persuasive.Figure out what every person on your team does best. Then help them capitalize on theirtalents, skills, and knowledge. You may need to explain your rationale and yourphilosophy so people understand that you have their best interests in mind.You have an awareness and appreciation of others’ likes and dislikes and an ability topersonalize. This puts you in a unique position. Use your Individualization talents tohelp identify areas where one size does not fit all.Make your colleagues and friends aware of each person’s unique needs. Soon peoplewill look to you to explain other people’s motivations and actions.Your presentations and speaking opportunities will be most engaging when you relateyour topic to the experiences of individuals in the audience. Use your Individualizationtalents to gather and share real-life stories that will make your points much better thanwould generic information or theories.You move comfortably among a broad range of styles and cultures, and you intuitivelypersonalize your interactions. Consciously and proactively make full use of these talentsby leading diversity and community efforts.Your Individualization talents can help you take a different approach to interpretingdata. While others are looking for similarities, make a point of identifyingdistinctiveness. Your interpretations will add a valuable perspective.

Questions




12

03/30/2010




13

03/30/2010

Achiever

Ideas for Action:

Select jobs that allow you to have the leeway to work as hard as you want and in whichyou are encouraged to measure your own productivity. You will feel challenged andalive in these environments.As an achiever, you relish the feeling of being busy, yet you also need to know whenyou are “done.” Attach timelines and measurement to goals so that effort leads todefined progress and tangible outcomes.Remember to build celebration and recognition into your life. Achievers tend to moveon to the next challenge without acknowledging their successes. Counter this impulse bycreating regular opportunities to enjoy your progress and accomplishments.Your drive for action might cause you to find meetings a bit boring. If that’s the case,appeal to your Achiever talents by learning the objectives of each meeting ahead of timeand by taking notes about progress toward those objectives during the meeting. You canhelp ensure that meetings are productive and efficient.Continue your education by attaining certifications in your area or specialty in additionto attending conferences and other programs. This will give you even more goals toachieve and will push your existing boundaries of accomplishment.You do not require much motivation from others. Take advantage of your self-motivation by setting challenging goals. Set a more demanding goal every time youfinish a project.Partner with other hard workers. Share your goals with them so they can help you to getmore done.Count personal achievements in your scoring “system.” This will help you direct yourAchiever talents toward family and friends as well as toward work.More work excites you. The prospect of what lies ahead is infinitely more motivatingthan what has been completed. Launch initiatives and new projects. Your seeminglyendless reserve of energy will create enthusiasm and momentum.Make sure that in your eagerness to do more at work, you do not skimp on quality.Create measurable outcome standards to guarantee that increased productivity ismatched by enhanced quality.

Questions





14

03/30/2010

Section III: Achievement

Look for signs of achievement as you read these real quotes from people who share your topfive themes.

Learner sounds like this:

Annie M., managing editor: “I get antsy when I am not learning something. Last year,although I was enjoying my work, I didn’t feel as though I was learning enough. So I took uptap dancing. It sounds strange, doesn’t it? I know I am never going to perform or anything,but I enjoy focusing on the technical skill of tapping, getting a little better each week, andmoving up from the beginners’ class to the intermediate class. That was a kick.”

Miles A., operations manager: “When I was seven years old, my teachers would tell myparents, ‘Miles isn’t the most intelligent boy in the school, but he’s a sponge for learning, andhe’ll probably go really far because he will push himself and continually be grasping newthings.’ Right now, I am just starting a course in business-travel Spanish. I know it isprobably too ambitious to think I could learn conversational Spanish and become totallyproficient in that language, but I at least want to be able to travel there and know thelanguage.”

Tim S., coach for executives: “One of my clients is so inquisitive that it drives him crazybecause he can’t do everything he wants to. I’m different. I am not curious in that broadsense. I prefer to go into greater depth with things so that I can become competent in themand then use them at work. For example, recently one of my clients wanted me to travel withhim to Nice, France, for a business engagement. So I started reading up on the region, buyingbooks, and checking the Internet. It was all interesting and I enjoyed the study, but I wouldn’thave done any of it if I wasn’t going to be traveling there for work.”



15

03/30/2010

Analytical sounds like this:

Jose G., school system administrator: “I have an innate ability to see structures, formats, andpatterns before they exist. For instance, when people are talking about writing a grantproposal, while I’m listening to them, my brain instinctively processes the type of grants thatare available and how the discussion fits into the eligibility, right down to the format of howthe information can fit on the grant form in a clear and convincing way.”

Jack T., human resources executive: “If I make a claim, I need to know that I can back it upwith facts and logical thinking. For example, if someone says that our company is not payingas much as other companies, I always ask, ‘Why do you say that?’ If they say, ‘Well, I saw anad in the paper that offers graduates in mechanical engineering five grand more than we arepaying,’ I'll reply by asking, ‘But where are these graduates going to work? Is their salarybased on geography? What types of companies are they going for? Are they manufacturingcompanies like ours? And how many people are in their sample? Is it three people, and one ofthem got a really good deal, thus driving the overall average up?’ There are many questions Ineed to ask to ensure that their claim is indeed a fact and not based on one misleading datapoint.”

Leslie J., school principal: “Many times, there are inconsistencies in the performance of thesame group of students from one year to the next. It’s the same group of kids, but their scoresare different year to year. How can this be? Which building are the kids in? How many of thekids have been enrolled for a full academic year? Which teachers were they assigned to, andwhat teaching styles were used by those teachers? I just love asking questions like these tounderstand what is truly happening.”



16

03/30/2010

Focus sounds like this:

Nick H., computer executive: “It is very important to me to be efficient. I’m the sort of guywho plays a round of golf in two and a half hours. When I was at Electronic Data Systems, Iworked out a set list of questions so that I could conduct a review of each division in 15minutes. The founder, Ross Perot, called me ‘The Dentist’ because I would schedule a wholeday of these in-and-out, fifteen-minute meetings.”

Brad F., sales executive: “I am always sorting priorities, trying to figure out the most efficientroute toward the goal so that there is very little dead time, very little wasted motion. Forexample, I will get multiple calls from customers who need me to call the service departmentfor them, and rather than taking each one of these calls as they come and interrupting thepriorities of the day, I group them together into one call at the end of the day and get it done.”

Mike L., administrator: “People are amazed how I put things into perspective and stay ontrack. When people around the district are stuck on issues and caught on contrived barriers, Iam able to pole-vault over them, reestablish the focus, and keep things moving.”

Doriane L., homemaker: “I am just the kind of person who likes to get to the point — inconversations, at work, and even when I am shopping with my husband. He likes to try onlots of things and has a good time doing it, whereas I try one thing on, and if I like it and it isnot horribly priced, I buy it. I’m a surgical shopper.”



17

03/30/2010

Individualization sounds like this:

Les T., hospitality manager: “Carl is one of our best performers, but he still has to see meevery week. He just wants a little encouragement and to check in, and he gets fired up a littlebit after that meeting. Greg doesn’t like to meet very often, so there’s no need for me tobother him. And when we do meet, it’s really for me, not for him.”

Marsha D., publishing executive: “Sometimes I would walk out of my office and — youknow how cartoon characters have those balloons over their head? I would see these littleballoons over everyone’s head telling me what was in their minds. It sounds weird, doesn’t it?But it happens all the time.”

Andrea H., interior designer: “When you ask people what their style is, they find it hard todescribe, so I just ask them, ‘What is your favorite spot in the house?’ And when I ask that,their faces light up, and they know just where to take me. From that one spot, I can begin topiece together the kind of people they are and what their style is.”



18

03/30/2010

Achiever sounds like this:

Melanie K., ER nurse: “I have to rack up points every day to feel successful. Today I’ve beenhere only half an hour, but I’ve probably racked up thirty points already. I ordered equipmentfor the ER, I had equipment repaired, I had a meeting with my charge nurse, and Ibrainstormed with my secretary about improving our computerized logbook. So on my list ofninety things, I have thirty done already. I’m feeling pretty good about myself right now.”

Ted S., salesperson: “Last year I was salesperson of the year out of my company’s threehundred salespeople. It felt good for a day, but sure enough, later that week, it was as if itnever happened. I was back at zero again. Sometimes I wish I wasn’t an achiever because itcan lead me away from a balanced life and toward obsession. I used to think I could changemyself, but now I know I am just wired this way. This theme is truly a double-edged sword. Ithelps me achieve my goals, but on the other hand, I wish I could just turn it off and on at will.But, hey, I can’t. I can manage it and avoid work obsession by focusing on achieving in allparts of my life, not just work.”

Sara L., writer: “This theme is a weird one. First, it’s good because you live in pursuit of theperpetual challenge. But in the second place, you never feel as though you’ve reached yourgoal. It can keep you running uphill at seventy miles an hour for your whole life. You neverrest because there’s always more to do. But, on balance, I think I would rather have it thannot. I call it my ‘divine restlessness,’ and if it makes me feel as if I owe the presenteverything I have, then so be it. I can live with that.”



19

03/30/2010

Questions

1. Talk to friends or coworkers to hear how they have used their talents to achieve.

2. How will you use your talents to achieve?



20

03/30/2010

StrengthsFinder 2.0 Report · StrengthsFinder 2.0 Report © 2000, 2006-2008 Gallup, Inc. All rights...

Documents

Transcript of StrengthsFinder 2.0 Report · StrengthsFinder 2.0 Report © 2000, 2006-2008 Gallup, Inc. All rights...